


Tattletales and Childhood Trauma

by JewishDavidJacobs



Series: David & Judaism [3]
Category: Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Canon Era, Canon Jewish Character, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Immigrants, Immigration & Emigration, Judaism, Sibling Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:00:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23688079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JewishDavidJacobs/pseuds/JewishDavidJacobs
Summary: When Sarah and Les get into one of those stupid fights that siblings do, David talks to his sister about why Les is the way that he is (while simultaneously being annoyed by him).Or: Sarah is a classic older sibling, Les is a tattletale, and David is staying out of it.
Relationships: David Jacobs & Sarah Jacobs
Series: David & Judaism [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1703293
Comments: 4
Kudos: 48





	Tattletales and Childhood Trauma

**Author's Note:**

> • Ima = Mother  
> • Aba = Father  
> • Neshama = Soul/spirit (can also be used to address or greet someone close to you. Sarah and Davey call each other that because they consider one another the other half of their soul)  
> • Nudnik = An annoying person  
> • Fershtay = Do you understand

“Sarah!” David Jacobs put down his book and gazed up at his sister. They were sitting on the roof together enjoying the warm sun while it would last before Winter came and took it away. Well, okay, sitting was an inaccurate description.  _ David  _ was sitting while  _ Sarah  _ was completely sprawled out on her back, head in her brother’s lap as he read to her. 

“What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“Oh yeah? Then why is Ima calling for you?” He raised a sceptical eyebrow and she scoffed but reluctantly stood up and brushed off her skirt. 

“I don’t know. And when isn’t she calling for me? Want to go find out what I did this time?” He groaned but she grabbed his hand and yanked on it, pulling him to his feet.

“Saz,” he complained, “I've been on my feet since three and before that I was at school. I just want to sit and read my book!”

“So was I, you nudnik. Come on.” 

“Sarah!” Ima called again. 

“Już idę!” 

They climbed down the few stories of the fire escape and slipped in through the window. Les was sitting on the bed, face puffy and red as if he had just finished crying, so David went over and sat with him. 

“Are you okay, boychik?” he asked in a whisper. Les nodded but then shook his head and buried it in between Davey’s neck and shoulder, throwing his arms around him. He returned the hug and gave Sarah a confused look. She just shrugged. 

“Sarah Miriam Jacobs!” she began yelling in Yiddish. “Did you tell your brother that we  _ found  _ him on the boat to America?” David couldn’t stop himself from scoffing and rolling his eyes, amused. Les briefly removed himself and glared up at him before returning to his previous role as a koala, making it difficult for David to breathe. When did he get so strong? 

“What? I was joking! He knew that.”

“Sarah! That’s an awful thing to do!”

“It was a  _ joke _ , Ima. He’s just being dramatic to get me in trouble! It was last night! If he was this upset he would have said something by now.” Actually, Les  _ had  _ been unusually quiet as they sold today and hadn’t even asked if they could go back to the lodging house afterwards. 

“How was he supposed to know it was a joke?”

“Because I said ‘I’m joking’ afterwards!” 

“Liar!” 

“David was there, Ima! He can tell you.” They all turned to him. He swallowed. 

“I wasn’t paying attention. I’m sorry…I was reading,” he spoke barely above a whisper. David did not like getting in the middle of fights between his siblings. Their mother sighed and sat down in one of the old, rickety chairs. 

“Sarah, apologize.”

“But, Ima! I didn’t do-”

“Now, Sarah! Fershtay?” 

“Sorry, Les,” she mumbled halfheartedly. 

“Good. Go back to what you were doing. I don’t want to see you until your father gets home. Dovid, boychik, help me cook, yes?” 

“Yes, Ima,” he replied, kissing Les on the forehead and standing up. He ignored the glare from Sarah. 

“Traitor,” she whispered in English as he walked by. 

  
  


___________________________________________

  
  


That night, back on the rooftop once their parents and Les were asleep, Sarah went on a tirade. 

“I can’t believe you, David! You should have stuck up for me!”

“Saz, please,” he begged, “Just let me read.” 

“It’s too dark to see the pages anyway. And I’m serious! Les was being a little brat! And I know you were paying attention last night because you kept grumbling about our childishness.” He sighed and closed the book far less gently than he normally would have. 

“Yes, Sarah, I  _ was  _ paying attention.”

“So then you know I told him it was a joke!”

“Yeah! I also know that you were being mean to him and if I told the truth about one I would have had to tell the truth about the other.” She stared at him with a set jaw, huffed, and sat down. 

“Wow. Lying so soon into the new year…” He rolled his eyes. 

“Look, you’re right: Les can be and was being a brat, but it doesn’t matter. I mean, it does but we’re his older siblings, right? It’s our job to protect him.”

“He doesn’t need protecting from me!” 

“I know that, I meant…Sarah, you know you’re my favorite person in the world right?” She smiled.

“And you’re mine.”

“Then you know I say this with love: the way we tease each other is too mean for Les.” 

“Too mean? Am I mean to you?” She looked genuinely distraught and David took her hand. 

“No, of course you’re not. I tease you the same way you tease me but Les isn’t built for that. He’s too…I don’t want to say too American because that’s not it.”

“Then what is it?”

“He’s not as strong as you. He’s nine years old. He’s too…untouched by horrors?” he tried and she laughed. 

“That’s a good thing, I’d argue.”

“Yeah, me too. But my point is that when you’ve been through what you’ve been through-”

“What  _ we’ve  _ been through, neshama. Don’t belittle your own experience.” He smiled and kissed her hand. 

“When you’ve been through what we’ve been through, self-deprecating jokes or jokes about the other person aren’t going to affect you or them. Les hasn’t had the life we have and I’m grateful for that every single day. And you know he’s sensitive about being ‘the American Jacobs.’ He doesn’t think it’s funny like Aba does.”

“Yeah.”

“At home, he thinks he’s too American and at school they think he’s too Polish.”

“Too Jewish, you mean.”

“That too,” he chuckled. “Regardless, he’s sensItive about his role in the family. It makes sense that you would be upset that he complains like that and makes big deals about everything - it upsets me too sometimes. And it’s probably something we should talk about with each other but we just have to try and remember that little things to us might be big things to him. He knows we all have to work but he doesn’t understand that we have a hard time feeding him and ourselves, so of course his biggest concerns aren’t the same as ours - he doesn’t have as much responsibility.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. I’m just so exhausted…not with him. Well, yeah with him and with everything else. I’m always tired physically and I feel like all anyone in this family does is work and then I come home to our mother yelling at me about whatever she thinks I messed up this time and it’s like that most days lately,” she looked at her brother. “Why does she hate me?” David pulled her into a hug. 

“She doesn’t. She loves you so much. She’s stressed and exhausted too but it isn’t an excuse.” Sarah nodded and pulled herself back. 

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. Seriously, how many times have I had complete breakdowns in front of you? This is nothing.” She nodded. “Are you going to be okay?” 

“Yeah. And I promise what I’m about to say isn’t about Les but…can we toss him in with Ima and Abba tonight?”

“I like the way you think, Jacobs.”

They went back inside and David picked their little brother up off of the bed and gently set him down in between their parents who barely stirred. 

“David?” Sarah whispered once they were settled in their bed. 

“Yeah?”

“You know I knew all that, right? Logically, I mean. I don’t want you to think I’m so insensitive that I wouldn’t know that.”

“I know you know,” he said, taking her hand again, “And when I need reminders you tell me too. You always tell me that it’s okay to mess up. Why don’t you let yourself?”

“Ah, so you’re using my own wisdom against me. Sneaky.”

“You know me. Can we sleep now? We have to be up in five hours anyway.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” she yawned. “If I pack lunches you have to get Les up.” Davey groaned and she laughed quietly. 

“You’re the worst. Fine,” he agreed. “Saz?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, neshama.” And for once without a younger brother in between them, they fell asleep. They were holding hands and - just for a moment - they were back on that shtetl in Poland, and they smiled. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think!


End file.
